Complex tubular members including hydroformed tube structures are used in many applications, such as in automobile A-pillars, B-pillars, C-pillars, the hinge pillar area, rocker panels, the wheel hub area, motor rails, and similar structures. In these tube structures, it is often desirable to place reinforcements at selected areas for added strength. In more complex tube structures, however, it can be difficult to place a reinforcement at a desired location because of bends and varying cross-sectional areas in the structure. Any reinforcement member for such a structure needs to be small enough to fit through the entire length of the tube, including the bends and narrower areas, and yet still be able to stay in place at a desired reinforcement location, even if the location has a larger cross-sectional area. Commonly, either the reinforcement member is too large to pass through smaller areas of the tube structures to reach the desired location, or the reinforcement member is too small to stay secured at the desired location once it is positioned.
Structural foam materials, often used with a carrier, can be used to create a reinforcement member that conforms to the tube structure and provides reduced stress distribution along the reinforcement. Placing and keeping the structural foam at the desired reinforcement location before the foam is expanded and cured, however, still can be difficult for the reasons noted above.
There is a need for a reinforcement assembly that is small enough to fit around curves and through smaller cross-sectional areas in a tubular structural member, yet will not shift position once it is placed at a desired location within the tube structure, even if the tube structure is moved before the reinforcement assembly is attached permanently to the tube structure.